They each have their own play styles and cater to a certain type of gamer. Nitro, which will come out for the Wii, is focused on the casual audience. World Online is set up as a free service similar to EA’s Battlefield: Heroes.

Lastly, Shift will be the most familiar to racing fans and will focus on the enthusiast side of the genre. In February, I had a chance to play an early prealpha build of the game, and it left a good impression on me. Shift tries to replicate the driver’s experience and that effort is spearheaded by the cockpit.

In past games, I was never a fan of this view. Although it gives you the most realistic perspective, it’s nearly unplayable because your line of sight is obstructed by the car’s frame, dashboard components, etc. But for some reason, I don’t feel that way playing Shift. For some reason, it works.

It’ll differentiate EA’s title from heavyweights such as Gran Turismo.

The cockpit perspective camera lets the developer, Slightly Mad Studios, use audio and visuals to deepen the visceral driving experience. The team wants to make you feel the adrenaline-producing and heart-pounding nature of being in a race car. They want players to know how hard the impact of a crash is and how disorienting they become by jarring the driver’s head around and obscure his vision

Another tweak to the racing experience is how the world blurs out when you reach high speeds. It’s a weird effect. At first, I thought there was too much motion blur on the screen, but if you look closely, the car closest to the player is as sharp as a tack.

The blur is actually a way to keep players focused on the road instead of being distracted by a million things in the periphery like the dials on the dashboard or the scenery. There’ll be plenty to see as you drive through real life tracks such as Brands Hatch or imaginary courses like one that winds through downtown London.

Of course, Shift has the regular perspectives like bumper and the third-person view. They work just fine, but you won’t get the crazy sight of your crumpled hood blocking your view or the cracks in the windshield from a crash.

Like in Forza Motorsports, you can damage the cars in Shift, and the wear will have an affect on speed and handling, but it won’t make the car undriveable.

EA says that Shift will support all wheels “within reason.” I specfically asked about the Logitech ones (I have a couple at home) and EA confirmed that yes, they would support the mainstream ones FTW.

What the team is trying to do is create an accessible but serious racing game. And without a doubt, it’s a hard middle ground to find. Of course, the game has a lot of elements to help novices with the experience. There’s a racing line that dynamically tells you how fast you should be traveling. There are assists like antilock breaks that help you around corners.

Meanwhile, the Shift retains some of the elements that made the Need for Speed franchise so beloved. Players can customize their vehicles. There will be online play. And when it comes to AI, Shift will have a bit of a grudge component in which other drivers will go after you if you play bumper cars with them.

But EA is reluctant to call the game a “simulator.” Maybe it’s just semantics, but perhaps, there’s something too hard-core about the word. Maybe “simulator” means “for gearheads only” for some folks.

Personally, I prefer my racers to be more on the realistic side, and by the looks of it, Need for Speed: Shift has got this realism nailed down pat.